DNA
by LittleJerseyanNinja
Summary: Charlie was a simple wood wisp. Her life in the woods was adventure enough. But when she joins the rowdy band of dwarves, she realizes that not all people are what she thought. What happens when she also realizes that the handsome dwarf Kili was pulled in by her wisp spell? She's terrified of finding out what love really means. But maybe the youngest heir can help her. Kili/OC


Wisps.

That's their name.

Creatures of the elements who originated from will-o-the-wisps, they take the shape of either a human or a small, floating magic orb. There are four types.

Wood Wisps.

Water Wisps.

Air Wisps.

Fire Wisps.

They have the ability to blend in with their surroundings, either fade into the backround or disappear completely. Few wisps can morph into animals. Wood wisps were foxes or wolves. Fire wisps were phoenix'. Water were otters. Air were hawks.

They were never made to love a mortal.

It was unspeakable. It was a law. No wisp was to love a mortal. Elves were exceptions, but most preferred not to. Wisps were also quite shy. They were as precious as the most valuable diamond, more valuable than the Arkenstone itself.

This is the story of a rather young wood wisp girl, who has a huge adventure, and just might find love with a dwarf prince.

* * *

My name is Cherokee Rose.

I know, it's a strange name. But I'm called Charlie for short. Because the beginning of my name is 'Ch.' Its complicated.

I am 66 years old. That's actually VERY young, because I'm a wood wisp, and we wisps live forever. No one really takes me seriously. Because when I was younger, I always made up stories.

I live here in the forest. Its a very comfortable life, if you ask me. There's always something to do and I'm very happy with my life.

You see, there's very few wisps left. There's only about 6 wood wisps left. I think there's 9 fire wisps, 4 air wisps, and 7 water wisps. Others say I'm lucky to have survived.

Well, I think-

_Wargs._

I turned in my branch and gasped. They were not common around here. Wargs had been the ones who wiped out most of the wisps.

I quickly morphed into a fox and jumped down from my branch. I ran up a fallen tree and got a good look of the field. A pack of something was running.

Dwarves?

I could see them running through the field, trying to stay out of sight. Then I recognized Gandalf. And a halfling? What are ANY of them doing here?

I looked around and saw the wargs chasing my friend, Radaghast. He was a dear friend. Damn the wargs!

I flipped off and landed on my fours like a cat. I slinked through the rocks. A simple wandering fox was no threat to beasts.

I was nearly out of breath when I got to the dwarves. I hid my panting as I trotted over to the youngest. He had dark brown hair, warm brown eyes, a mustache, and the beginning of a beard. I smiled as they stopped and pressed against the boulder. Maybe I could help.

I rubbed my head against his leg. He looked down at me and smiled a little. He bent down a bit and rubbed his thumb over my red fur. I smiled, licked his thumb, and bolted out, yowling in an alarm cry. The warg and orc above them scowled and jumped after me. I yipped louder and raced towards the woods. I looked back and smiled; the young dwarf's arrow took him down.

But unlucky enough, the warg screamed.

"Shut up!" I hissed. Animals could understand each other. It snarled at me. "Never!" he hissed back, and yowled even louder. Growling, I turned into a girl and took my sharp stone knife from my belt, made from twine and vines. I threw it at the wargs eyes. Too late; the other orcs and wargs were attacking. Another arrow finished off the orc.

I ran towards the dwarf. The others were sliding down into the small cave hidden in the rock. I wondered if they knew it led to Rivendell?

I grabbed his hand as he fired one last arrow. Then pulled him towards the cave.

I could sense that he was unsure of me. He most likely seen me when I morphed. But my wood sense also picked up curiousity.

I practically pushed him down. I turned back to see if the orcs were near, when an arrow suddenly impaled in my side. I refused to cry out, and instead fell to my knees and fell down the small slope.

My vision was fading. I felt blood rushing by my ears. I could feel the dwarves just watching me. "Oh gods, oh gods oh gods..." I mumbled, looking at the arrow. I struggled to morph. "Come on, come on, come on..." I said quietly. "Morph!"

I could feel the two flickering forms. Then Gandalf came forward, whispered some words, and I felt the red fur rip across my skin and my small frame become smaller. Morphing wasn't painful. It just looks like it is.

I climbed to my paws and smiled up at him.

I cringed as I suddenly heard the elvish horn. I could hear the arrows flying and the horses galloping. An orc rolled down by me and I jumped away in disgust of the creatures. An important-looking dwarf pulled an arrow out of it and snarled, "elves." Then he turned to me.

"Gandalf, who is she?" asked the dwarf.

"Cherokee Rose, Charlie for short. She is a warrior, and will assist you to reclaim Erebor."

"What!?" cried some of the dwarves. I would too, but I was a fox.

To show that I was NOT okay with this, I pawed and scratched at the ground, made anxious sounds, and turned in a circle. Then yipped. And pointed my head in the direction back in the field.

Gandalf just gave me a look.

"Thorin," he started. "With her magic powers, you will be protected throughout the rest of your quest." Thorin glared, but didn't say anything.

The wizard turned to the dwarves. "She will still be affected by the arrow. Master Kili, I believe you should be the one to carry her."

The young dwarf from earlier hesitantly stepped forward. I smile and rubbed against his leg. He grinned and pet me again, then picked me up like I was a puppy. I nestled into his chest.

They continued along the path and I somehow fell asleep...

When I woke up, I was in a comfortable bed, wearing a long white nightgown. I was a girl again! The arrow was gone and my side was wrapped in bandages. But I could easily morph again.

I slipped out of the bed and picked up my pack that sat next to the bed. My bare feet felt cool against the marble floor. As an elf passed by, I assumed we were in Rivendell. "Can you show me where the dwarves are, please?" I asked. The elf nodded and silently showed me to a large balcony.

I set my pack down by the door and stepped in, then stepped out again. I was naturally shy. I should just go back to the woods. That's where I belong.

Right before I could take my pack again and leave quietly, Kili saw me. Great.

"Charlie!" he called. "Come over!"

"Um.. No thanks," I said quietly, wanting nothing more than to run back to my reading trees and stay there for the rest of my endless life. Don't get me wrong; I love adventures. I've always had them in the woods. Learning more magic from Radaghast, looking for more wisps in the woods (even though I've found none,) and getting chased by wolves in fox form.

"Come on! Aren't you hungry?"

My stomach growled. "Maybe... Fine."

I let go of my pack and walked to the table. There was an empty seat on his left. I have this weird habit of never walking on my heels, but on the balls of my feet. Like a deer, sort of. I have perfect balance and I've never fallen.

I sat in the chair, silent for a moment, before quickly piling my plate with food. I had skipped breakfast that morning, and lunch. I started to swiftly eat it all, but not messily.

Kili made a face. "Ew, how do you eat that stuff?" he asked.

I shrugged. "I'm an omnivore."

He nodded. "Okay..."

He then introduced me to the dwarves around us. Dwalin, Balin, Nori, Dori, Ori, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Oin, Gloin, and his brother on my left, Fili. They each either gave me a polite smile or a nod as their names were said.

"Uncle Thorin and our burglar are with Lord Elrond and Gandalf, trying to read the runes on our map," Kili said.

Soon we were all laying on the floor, all away from each other. I looked at the door, longing to already be sleeping in my tree. But Kili had planted himself next to me, shoulder-to-shoulder.

"What are you?"

I looked at him. "What?"

"What..._are _you? You're definitley not a dwarf, nor a tiny human girl. You're the size of a hobbit, but your feet are very small... Which only leads to a very small elf."

I laughed. "Nice work, detective dwarf," I said. "But I'm not any of those things."

He blinked. "How?"

I giggled. Which made him smile. "I'm a wisp. A very young one, since we live forever. I'm 66 years old, and a wood wisp. I'm a spirit of the forest."

He nodded. "I never heard of a wisp."

"There's not many of us left." I explained all the things about wisps, which surprised myself greatly. Didn't I want to bolt out the door just a few minutes ago? Kili had a weird effect on me...


End file.
